“I was wrong” – Former La Masia wonderkid regrets Barcelona exit – Football España

Barcelona have had many top talents come through the famous La Masia academy over the years, with the most notable – of course – being Lionel Messi. In that last decade, the likes of Ansu Fati, Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi have made their name before impressively making the jump up to the first team, but perhaps none of them were as highly-regarded in the youth categories as Ilaix Moriba was.

Big things were expected of Moriba when he broke into the Barcelona first team back in September. However, he only managed to make 18 appearances before he opted to leave the club for RB Leipzig, in a move that was received poorly in the offices of Can Barca.

Since leaving Barcelona, Moriba’s career has stagnated. He struggled to make an impact in Germany, and that led to back-to-back loan spells at Valencia and Getafe, where he also struggled to make his mark. However, things are looking up in his latest spell back in Spanish football with Celta Vigo.

Moriba joined Celta on loan last summer, and he has instantly hit it off in Galicia. He has been one of the pillars in Claudio Giraldez’s side, and his performances have been getting better and better as the season goes on. And the expectation is that the move will be made permanent at the end of the season.

Moriba is very happy at Celta, although he has recently admitted that he has regrets about his decision to leave Barcelona in 2021, with quotes carried by Sport.

“I was wrong to leave Barcelona. I was very young and I had a lot of pressure. For a moment I thought it was all over. Luckily now I’m happy at Celta.”

Moriba is still only 22, so he has his best players ahead of him. He has lots of time to deliver on the potential that he showed in La Masia, and if he does, he could end up earning a move back to Barcelona.